Glove and accessory for use with a glove

ABSTRACT

There is provided a glove for protecting fingers of a wearer against impact from an object. The glove includes a plurality of finger portions for receiving the fingers of the wearer. Each finger portion defines a palm side and a dorsal side. At least one substantially rigid force transferring element is attached to at least one of the finger portions and extends at least partially between the palm side and dorsal side of such finger portion. The force transferring element is configured, upon receiving a compressive impact force from the object on the dorsal side of the finger portion, to at least partially transfer the compressive force past the wearer&#39;s fingers. A palm side edge of the force transferring element is operatively spaced away from the palm side of the finger portion when the glove is worn by the wearer.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

This application claims priority from South African patent applicationnumber 2019/01014 filed on 18 Feb. 2019, which is incorporated byreference herein.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

This invention relates to protective gloves and accessories used withprotective gloves.

More particularly, but not exclusively, this invention relates to aglove for protecting fingers or hand of a wearer against impact from anobject during ball sports, goal sports or the like.

BACKGROUND TO THE INVENTION

Protective gloves are used in a variety of sports to protect the handsand fingers of a wearer. This is particularly important in ball or pucksports played with bats or sticks. Well known examples of sports whereprotective gloves are required include cricket, hockey, ice hockey,baseball and lacrosse. These sports involve fast moving objects such assolid core balls, pucks, bats and sticks which pose a risk of injury tothe hands and fingers of players. As a result, protective gloves havebeen developed over the years. These known protective gloves generallyinclude padding on a dorsal side of the glove to protect against theobjects. Padding is typically not provided on a palm side of thesegloves, because that would interfere with the player's feel andinteraction with whatever sporting equipment is being used.

The known gloves are designed so that the pads absorb some of the energyof the striking ball or object. This padding comes in many shapes andsizes and is sometimes in the form of elongated sausage-like padsprovided along the dorsal side of finger portions of the gloves. Theseare appropriately termed sausage-fingered gloves. Other types ofprotective gloves have a series of protective pads along the dorsal sideof the glove and finger portions. Batting gloves, such as cricketbatsman's or batswoman's gloves, sometimes include soft padding alongthe length of the index finger on a side adjacent the thumb, to reducethe impact of a ball striking the index finger from that side.

Notwithstanding these developments, injuries to players' fingers andhands are still very common even when these known gloves are worn. Aproblem with known gloves is that when the pads are compressed by theball, a significant portion of the ball's energy is still transferredthrough the player's finger which is then compressed against the bat orhandle, often causing injury or even fractured bones. During theircareers, most professional batsmen in the game of cricket would havesuffered broken bones in their fingers or hands as result of this typeof compression injury at some point.

Other attempts at reducing these injuries have been made such as thosedisclosed in PCT application no. PCT/AU2013/001017, where a protectiveshield is provided directly on a handle of a cricket bat. However, thisprotective shield is bulky and prevents certain movements of the handsand bat that is natural to the game.

Accordingly, there is scope to address the aforementioned problems andlimitations, or at least to provide a useful alternative to the knowndevices.

The preceding discussion of the background to the invention is intendedonly to facilitate an understanding of the present invention. It shouldbe appreciated that the discussion is not an acknowledgment or admissionthat any of the material referred to was part of the common generalknowledge in the art as at the priority date of the application.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In accordance with an aspect of the invention there is provided a glovefor protecting fingers of a wearer against impact from an object, theglove comprising:

-   -   a plurality of finger portions for receiving the fingers of the        wearer, each finger portion defining a palm side and a dorsal        side; and        at least one substantially rigid, planar force transferring        element which is attached to at least one of the finger portions        and extends at least partially between the palm side and dorsal        side of such finger portion, the force transferring element        being configured, upon receiving a compressive impact force from        the object on the dorsal side of the finger portion, to at least        partially transfer the compressive force past the wearer's        fingers,    -   wherein a palm side edge of the force transferring element is        operatively spaced away from the palm side of the finger portion        when the glove is worn by the wearer.

Further features provide for the palm side edge to be configured to movetowards the palm side of the finger portion upon receiving thecompressive impact force from the object; for the force transferringelement to be suspended by a flexible member so that the palm side edgeof the force transferring element may be operatively spaced away from ahandle of sporting equipment held by the wearer in use; and for theflexible member to be compressed under the force of the object bringingthe force transferring element into abutment with the sportingequipment, thereby at least partially transferring the impact force fromthe object to the sporting equipment to protect one or more fingers or ahand of the wearer.

Still further features provide for the force transferring element toinclude a substantially rigid member extending at least partiallybetween the palm side and dorsal side; and for the palm side edge of theforce transferring element to be arranged to abut a handle of sportingequipment when held by the wearer upon receiving the compressive impactforce.

Yet further features provide for the force transferring element tofurther include a dorsal surface; and for the dorsal surface to includea transversely extending wing or shield which extends at least partiallyacross an adjacent finger portion; and for the dorsal surface itself toextend across one or more of the finger portions.

Further features provide for the force transferring element to be in theform of a u-shaped structure including two substantially rigid membersextending at least partially between the palm side and the dorsal side;and for the u-shaped structure to include a dorsal surface facing awayfrom the palm side, the dorsal surface extending across one, two, threeor more than three of the finger portions.

Still further features provide for the force transferring element to besuspended by a flexible member so that the palm side edge of the forcetransferring element is operatively suspended away from the handle ofthe sporting equipment and is configured to move into abutment with thesporting equipment upon receiving the compressive impact force from theobject, thereby at least partially transferring the impact force fromthe object to the sporting equipment to protect one or more fingers orother parts of the hand of the wearer; for the flexible member to beimpact absorbing; and for the palm side edge to be suspended away fromthe sporting equipment in use, so that it enables the wearer to use thesporting equipment freely without the force transferring element or palmside edge coming into contact with the sporting equipment unless asignificant impact is received on the dorsal side.

Yet further features provide for the force transferring element to havea radial length which is greater than a diameter of the wearer'sfingers, or an estimated diameter of the wearer's fingers expected touse the glove; and for at least two force transferring elements to beprovided between two or more of the finger portions.

Further features provide for the glove to include padding adjacent to,or forming part of the finger portions, or adjacent to a body of theglove; for the padding to include an inner pad which is on the dorsalside of the glove near the wearer's fingers, and an outer pad which ison the dorsal side of the glove and outside the inner pad; for the innerpad to be provided, between the wearer's finger and the outer pad, andfor example, in the case of a u-shaped or winged force transferringelement, for the dorsal surface of the element to extend between theinner and outer pads; or for the dorsal surface to extend across one ormore of the finger portions between the inner and outer pads; for theinner pad to be arranged to space the u-shaped force transferringelement away from the wearer's hand or fingers, and away from the palmside of the finger portions, or away from the palm side of the glove;for the inner pad to be soft, so that the force transferring element isnot perceived by the wearer; and for the inner pad or the finger portionto be configured such that when an impact is received on the dorsalside, one of the outer pad and the inner pad is compressed, until thepalm side edge of the force transferring element comes into abutmentwith the sporting equipment, or with the handle thereof, therebytransferring at least part of the compressive force past the wearer'sfingers or past the wearer's hand onto the handle or onto the sportingequipment; and for the force transferring element to form a protectivechamber wherein the hand or fingers of the wearer are located in use, toinhibit injury from the compressive force of the object. The flexiblemember may be provided by the inner pad, or by a part of the glove.

Still further features provide for a distal end of the dorsal surface ofthe u-shaped force transferring element to extend past a tip of one ofthe wearer's fingers in use; and for the distal end to be an open end;alternatively, for the distal end to include a substantially rigidclosure or face that at least partially covers the tip of one or more ofthe wearer's fingers in use.

In accordance with another aspect of the invention there is provided aglove for protecting hands of a wearer against impact from an object,the glove comprising:

-   -   a glove body having a plurality of finger portions for receiving        the fingers of the wearer, the glove body defining a palm side        and a dorsal side; and    -   at least one substantially rigid force transferring element        which is attached to the glove body and extends at least        partially between the palm side and dorsal side of the glove,        the force transferring element being configured, upon receiving        a compressive impact force from the object on the dorsal side of        the glove, to at least partially transfer the compressive force        past the wearer's hands,    -   wherein a palm side edge of the force transferring element is        operatively spaced away from the palm side of the glove when the        glove is worn by the wearer.

Further features provide for the palm side edge to be configured to movetowards the palm side of the glove upon receiving the compressive impactforce from the object; for the force transferring element to besuspended by a flexible member so that the palm side edge of the forcetransferring element may be operatively spaced away from a handle ofsporting equipment held by the wearer; and for the flexible member to beoperatively compressed under the force of the object bringing the forcetransferring element into abutment with the sporting equipment, therebyat least partially transferring the impact force from the object to thesporting equipment to protect one or more fingers or a hand of thewearer in use.

In accordance with yet another aspect of the invention there is providedan accessory for use with a glove to protect hands of a wearer againstimpact from an object, the accessory comprising:

-   -   a substantially rigid force transferring element having a palm        side edge and a dorsal surface; and    -   an attachment formation which is configured to be attached to a        glove body such that the force transferring element extends at        least partially between a palm side and a dorsal side of the        glove in use, with the palm side edge operatively spaced away        from the palm side of the glove.

A further feature provides for the attachment formation to be arrangedto enable movement of the force transferring element to at leastpartially transfer a compressive impact force from the object past thewearer's hands in use.

Still further features provide for the attachment formation to bearranged to be suspended by a flexible member so that the palm side edgeof the force transferring element may be operatively spaced away from ahandle of sporting equipment held by the wearer; and for the flexiblemember to be arranged to compress under the force of the object bringingthe force transferring element into abutment with the sportingequipment, thereby at least partially transferring the impact force fromthe object to the sporting equipment to protect one or more fingers or ahand of the wearer in use.

Embodiments of the invention will now be described, by way of exampleonly, with reference to the accompanying drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

In the drawings:

FIG. 1 is a three-dimensional view of a glove including a plurality offinger portions for protecting fingers of a wearer against impact froman object;

FIG. 2 is a three-dimensional view from a little finger side of theglove of FIG. 1, showing more detail of one of a plurality of forcetransferring elements provided on one of the finger portions for alittle finger of a wearer;

FIG. 3 is a three-dimensional view from a thumb side of the glove ofFIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is a three-dimensional view of another example embodiment of theglove as viewed from a palm side of the glove, showing a broaderu-shaped force transferring element;

FIG. 5 is a three-dimensional view from a distal end of the glove ofFIG. 4, showing more detail of the broader u-shaped force transferringelement;

FIG. 6 is a three-dimensional view from a thumb side of the glove ofFIG. 4;

FIG. 7 is a three-dimensional view from a little finger side of theglove of FIG. 4;

FIG. 8 is a diagrammatic sectional view of the glove of FIG. 1 in use,while the wearer is holding a bat or stick;

FIG. 9 is a diagrammatic sectional view similar to FIG. 8, showing acompressive impact force being received by the glove from an object suchas a ball, puck or stick;

FIG. 10 is a diagrammatic sectional view of the glove of FIG. 4 in use,while the wearer is holding a bat or stick;

FIG. 11 is a diagrammatic sectional view similar to FIG. 10, showing acompressive impact force being received by the glove from an object suchas a ball, puck or stick;

FIG. 12 is a top view of another example embodiment of a glove showing awinged force transferring element of the index finger's finger portion;

FIG. 13 is a three-dimensional view from a thumb side of the glove ofFIG. 12;

FIG. 14 is a three-dimensional view of a distal end of the indexfinger's finger portion of the glove of FIG. 12, showing the glove beingused to hold sporting equipment such as a bat or stick; and

FIG. 15 is a three-dimensional view from a distal end of anotherembodiment of the glove, similar to FIG. 5, which includes an angledforce transferring element.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION WITH REFERENCE TO THE DRAWINGS

There is provided a protective glove for guarding the hand or fingers ofa user of the glove, for example while the user is holding equipmentsuch as sporting equipment. The glove includes a plurality of shieldingmembers or accessories provided to inhibit damage to the user's fingersor hand. The shielding members may be made of a substantially rigidmaterial such as, but not limited to, metal, carbon fibre, plastics,polymers (for example polycarbonate), composites or the like. Theshielding members or accessories may be suspended by cushions whichelevate or suspend the shielding members away from a gripping side ofthe glove while holding the equipment. When the glove receives a hit orstrike from a ball, puck, bat, stick or any other object, a contactsurface of one or more of the shielding members or accessories may bearranged to move and to make contact with the equipment, therebydirecting at least part of the energy from the hit onto the equipmentand beyond the user's fingers or hand. This may protect the user's handor fingers from damage such as compression fractures and other injuries.An accessory or force transferring element for use with a glove may beprovided and it may be retro-fitted to an existing glove.

An example embodiment of a glove is shown in FIGS. 1 to 3, anotherexample embodiment of the glove is shown in FIGS. 4 to 7, yet anotherexample embodiment of the glove is shown in FIGS. 12 to 14, and afurther example embodiment of the glove is shown in FIG. 15.Diagrammatic sectional views of the example embodiment of FIGS. 1 to 3,are shown in FIGS. 8 to 9; and diagrammatic sectional views of theexample embodiment of FIGS. 4 to 7, are shown in FIGS. 10 to 11.

Referring to FIGS. 1, 8 and 9, there is provided a glove (10) forprotecting fingers (12, 14, 16, 18, 20) of a wearer against impact froman object (22). The glove (10) may include a plurality of fingerportions (24, 26, 28, 30, 32) for receiving the fingers of the wearer. Afirst finger portion (24) may be provided for receiving the wearer'sthumb (12); a second finger portion (26) for the wearer's index finger(14); a third finger portion (28) for the wearer's middle finger (16); afourth finger portion (30) for the wearer's ring finger (18); and afifth finger portion (32) for the wearer's little finger (20). Each ofthe finger portions (24, 26, 28, 30, 32) may define a palm side (34) anda dorsal side (36). The glove (10) may include a glove body (33)defining its palm side (34) and its dorsal side (36). The glove (10) mayfurther include at least one substantially rigid, planar forcetransferring element (38, 40, 42) which may be attached to at least oneof the finger portions (24, 26, 28, 30, 32) and may extend at leastpartially between the palm side (34) and dorsal side (36) of such fingerportion. The force transferring element (38, 40, 42) may also beattached to the glove body (33) and may extend at least partiallybetween a palm side (34) and a dorsal side (36) of the glove (10). Theforce transferring element may also be made separately and retro-fittedor attached to an existing glove, or attached to the glove duringmanufacturing of the glove.

In the example embodiment shown in FIGS. 1 to 3 and FIGS. 8 to 9, au-shaped force transferring element (38, 40) may be provided for theindex finger's finger portion (26) and for the middle finger's fingerportion (28). The u-shaped force transferring element (38, 40) may besubstantially planar, but may have some curved surfaces or edges asrequired. Curved or substantially flat planar force transferringelements (42) may be attached to the little finger's finger portion(32). These are more clearly visible in FIG. 2. More detail of the forcetransferring element (38) for the index finger's finger portion (26) isshown in FIG. 3. In the example embodiment of the glove (10), forcetransferring elements (38, 40, 42) may be omitted from the fingerportions for the ring finger and thumb (24, 30), however embodiments arealso possible where force transferring elements may be provided on eachof the five finger portions (24, 26, 28, 30, 32). Various arrangementsare possible and the force transferring elements may be attached todifferent fingers than are shown in the accompanying drawings.

FIGS. 8 and 9 show diagrammatic sectional views of the glove of FIGS. 1to 3 in use while the wearer is holding a bat (46) or other sportingequipment. For exemplary purposes, in the sectional views in FIGS. 8 and9, force transferring elements (48, 50) are also provided on the ringfinger's finger portion (30) and on the thumb's finger portion (24). Apalm side edge (44) of the force transferring elements (38, 40, 42, 48,50) may be operatively spaced away from the palm side (34) of the fingerportions (24, 26, 28, 30, 32) when the glove (10) is worn by the wearer,as is indicated by distance (D). This may improve the “feel” of the bat(46) perceived by the wearer because the force transferring elementspreferably do not make contact with a handle of the bat (46) while thewearer holds or uses it. Embodiments are also possible wherein the forcetransferring elements (38, 40, 42, 48, 50) are not operatively spacedaway from the palm side (34) of the finger portions or from the palmside of the glove, and where they may operatively abut the bat (46) orits handle while the wearer is holding the bat.

In FIG. 9 is shown the glove (10) in use, when receiving an impact fromthe object (22). It will be appreciated that the object (22) may be anyobject that may cause harm to the wearer, including, but not limited toa ball, bat, stick, puck, etc. The palm side edge (44) of each of theforce transferring elements (38, 40, 42, 48, 50) may be configured tomove towards the palm side (34) of the relevant finger portion (24, 26,28, 30, 32) upon receiving a compressive impact force (F) from theobject (22) on the dorsal side (36) of that finger portion. In theexample shown, the impact force (F) from the object (22) is receivedpartially on the ring finger's finger portion (30) and partially on thelittle finger's finger portion (32). The force transferring elements(42, 48) may at least partially transfer the compressive force (F) pastthe wearer's ring and little fingers (18, 20) as indicated by thedirectional arrows (A). When the ball (22) strikes the glove from thedorsal side (36), the force transferring elements (42, 48), and theirpalm side edges (44) may be configured to move towards the bat (46), andtowards the palm side edge (34), until they abut with the handle of thebat (46). Upon making contact with the bat (46), at least part of theforce (F) or energy of the impact is transferred to the relatively hardsurface of the bat (46) which may protect the wearer's fingers (18, 20)or hand from injury. The bones (52) of the wearer's fingers (12, 14, 16,18, 20) (as well as other body tissue and cartilage of the hands and thefingers) may hence also be protected from compressive fractures or otherdamage, because a protective chamber may be formed by the forcetransferring elements. The ball (22) may contact the padding (56, 54)which may cause the force transferring element to move and thecompressive force may hence be transferred through the forcetransferring element via the padding (for example, the ring finger'sfinger portion (30), its padding (56, 54), and its force transferringelement (48) in FIG. 9). Alternatively, the ball may contact the forcetransferring element directly (for example force transferring element(42) in FIG. 9), thereby transferring at least part of the impact forcepast the wearer's hand and onto the handle of the bat (46).

Referring again to FIG. 8, the force transferring elements may have avariety of shapes. For example, the force transferring elements (38, 40)for the index and middle fingers' finger portions (26, 28) may be au-shaped structure and may each include two substantially rigid members(38.1, 38.2, 40.1, 40.2) extending at least partially between the palmside (34) and the dorsal side (36) of those finger portions (26, 28).This u-shaped structure may also include a dorsal surface (38.3, 40.3)facing away from the palm side (34). Similar substantially rigid membersand dorsal surfaces (48.1, 48.2, 48.3, 50.1, 50.2, 50.3) may be providedfor the ring and thumb's finger portions (30, 24). The dorsal surface(38.3) may extend across one, two, three or four (or more than three) ofthe finger portions. In the embodiment shown in FIGS. 4 to 7, the dorsalsurface extends across four of the finger portions, as is discussed inmore detail below. The dorsal surface of each force transferring elementmay include one or more dorsal edges. It will be appreciated that forthe little finger's force transferring elements (42), the dorsal surfacemay be a dorsal edge of the force transferring element. With a wider orbroader force transferring element, the dorsal surface may extend acrossone or more of the finger portions.

Still referring to FIG. 8, the glove also includes padding (54, 56)which may form part of the finger portions (24, 26, 28, 30, 32). Thepadding may include an inner pad (54) near the wearer's fingers (12, 14,16, 18, 20), which may be towards the dorsal side (36) of the glove(10). It should be appreciated that the dorsal side of the glove (10)may also include the dorsal sides (36) of the finger portions (24, 26,28, 30, 32). The padding may further include an outer pad (56) which maybe provided on the dorsal side (36) of the glove (10), outside the innerpad (54). In the example embodiment, the inner pad (54) may be providedbetween the wearer's finger (12, 14, 16, 18, 20) and the outer pad (56).In the case of a u-shaped force transferring element (38, 40, 48, 50),the dorsal surface (38.3, 40.3, 48.3, 50.3) of the respective element(38, 40, 48, 50) may extend between the inner and outer pads (54, 56).The inner pad (54) may have the functionality of improving the “feel” ofthe glove (10) to the wearer by creating a barrier between the wearer'sfingers (12, 14, 16, 18, 20) and the dorsal surface (38.3, 40.3, 48.3,50.3) of the force transferring elements (38, 40, 48, 50). The inner pad(54), or the outer pad (56) may be arranged to space the u-shapedstructure away from the wearer's hand or fingers, and away from the palmside (34) of the finger portions (24, 26, 28, 30, 32). The u-shape maybe selected so that the “feel” of the glove (10) as perceived by thewearer is not substantially affected. The inner pad (54) may for examplebe manufactured from soft material so that the force transferringelements are not perceived by the wearer while wearing the glove (10).

The inner pad (54), or the finger portions (24, 26, 28, 30, 32) may beconfigured such that when an impact is received on the dorsal side (36),one or both of the relevant inner and outer pads (56, 54) are at leastpartially compressed until the palm side edge (44) of the forcetransferring element (38, 40, 42, 48, 50) comes into abutment with thesporting equipment (46), or with the handle thereof, therebytransferring at least part of the compressive force (F) past thewearer's fingers (12, 14, 16, 18, 20) and hand directly onto the handle.The force transferring element may form a protective chamber wherein thehand or fingers of the wearer are located in use. A distal end (51)(shown in FIG. 1) of the dorsal surface (38.3) of the u-shaped forcetransferring element (38) may extend past a tip (53) of any one of thewearer's fingers. The distal end may be an open end, or alternatively,embodiments are possible wherein the distal end (51) may include asubstantially rigid closure (an example of which is shown in FIG. 15 anddescribed below) that at least partially covers the tip (53) of thewearer's finger in use.

Referring again to FIG. 9, as the ball (22) impacts the dorsal side (36)of the glove (10), the little and ring fingers' finger portions (30, 32)are at least partially compressed by the compressive force (F) of theball. This is because the inner padding (54) and/or the outer padding(56) is at least partially compressed or deformed, which may cause theforce transferring elements (42, 48) and the palm side edges (44) tomove towards the palm side (34) of the glove (10) (or towards the palmside (34) of the finger portions), until it abuts with the handle of thesporting equipment (46). For finger portions (30, 32) the outer padding(56) may be compressed while the inner padding (54) may remainsubstantially in its normal shape (substantially un-compressed). Theinner padding (54) may however move slightly towards the fingers (18,20) of the wearer (without compressing them substantially) until thepalm side edges (44) abut with the bat (46). The force transferringelements (38, 40, 42, 48, 50) may be suspended (D) by the padding (54,56) away from the palm side (34) when not receiving an impact (as shownin FIG. 8). The padding (54, 56) may thus provide a flexible member(which may preferably be impact absorbing) so that the palm side edges(44) of the force transferring elements are operatively suspended orelevated away from the handle (46) of the sporting equipment. This mayenable the wearer to use the sporting equipment (46) freely without theforce transferring elements (38, 40, 42, 48, 50) or palm side edges (44)coming into contact with the sporting equipment (46) during use and whennot receiving an impact. The elevation or spacing of the palm sideedge(s) away from the sporting equipment may also be provided by the waythat the force transferring element is attached to the glove. The gloveitself, or the finger portions may provide a flexible member whichsuspends the palm side edge(s) away from the sporting equipment until animpact is received from the object. In the embodiments of the presentdisclosure, the flexible member may be compressed under the compressiveor impact force of the object and this may, in turn, cause the palm sideedge(s) to come into abutment with the handle of the sporting equipmentto at least partially transfer the force past the wearer's hand orfingers.

It should be appreciated that the finger portions (24, 26, 28, 30, 32)of the glove (10) may also include finger receiving parts (25) which maybe made of suitable material such as, but not limited to, cloth,leather, nylon etc. The finger receiving parts (25) of the fingerportions (24, 26, 28, 30, 32) may be attached to the padding (54, 56)for example by adhering, gluing or stitching or other attachment methodsmay be used. The force transferring elements (38, 40, 42, 48, 50) mayfor example be stitched, adhered or otherwise attached to the padding(54, 56) and/or to the finger portions (24, 26, 28, 30, 32) and/or tothe finger receiving parts (25). It is further envisaged that the forcetransferring elements may include an attachment formation or attachmentmeans for attaching each of the force transferring elements to the glove(in other words, retro-fitting it to an existing glove). Adhesives,gluing, stitching or other attachment or fastening methods orapparatuses may be used. The force transferring elements may have aradial length (L) which may be equal to or greater than a diameter ofthe wearer's fingers, or an estimated diameter of a wearer's fingers whois expected to use the glove.

FIGS. 4 to 7 and FIGS. 10 to 11 show another example embodiment (100) ofthe glove where the force transferring element may be in the form of abroader or wider u-shaped force transferring element (158) which may atleast partially cover and protect more than one finger of the wearer.For example, four fingers (26, 28, 30, 32) (in this case the index,middle, ring and little finger of the wearer) may be protected by thebroader u-shaped force transferring element (158). Similar to theu-shaped force transferring element (38) of FIG. 1, the broader forcetransferring element (158) may also have two substantially rigid members(158.1, 158.2) extending at least partially between a palm side (162)and a dorsal side (164) of the glove (100). Stated differently, the twosubstantially rigid members (158.1, 158.2) may extend at least partiallybetween a palm side (162) and a dorsal side (164) of the relevant fingerportions (26, 28, 30, 32). These substantially rigid members (158.1,158.2) may extend along the index finger's finger portion (26) and alongthe little finger's finger portion (32). The broader force transferringelement (158) may also include a dorsal surface (158.3) facing away fromthe palm side (162). Other features of this embodiment may be similar tothe embodiment described with reference to FIGS. 1 to 3, FIGS. 8 to 9 orFIG. 15 which is described below. FIGS. 10 and 11 are similar to FIGS. 8and 9, but show the embodiment of the glove (100) of FIGS. 4 to 7 inuse. A palm side edge (160) of the broader force transferring element(158) may be operatively spaced away from the palm side (162) of thefinger portions (26, 28, 30, 32) when the glove (100) is worn by thewearer, as is illustrated by distance (DD). Inner and outer pads (154,156) may be provided similarly to the inner and outer pads (54, 56) ofthe embodiment of FIGS. 1 to 3 and FIGS. 8 to 9. In this exampleembodiment, the force transferring element (50) for the thumb's fingerportion may be omitted (for example, to possibly increase mobility ofthe wearer's thumb), but it may still include inner and/or outer pads(154, 156). The broader force transferring element (158) may have aradial length (LL) which may be equal to or greater than a diameter ofthe wearer's fingers, or an estimated diameter of a wearer's fingers whois expected to use the glove. The broader u-shape may also be selectedso that the “feel” of the glove (100) as perceived by the wearer is notsubstantially affected.

Turning now to FIG. 11, upon receiving an impact from an object (22) andas result of a compressive force (FF), the force transferring element(158) and particularly its palm side edges (160) may move towards thepalm side (162) of the glove (100) until one or both of them abut withthe handle of the sporting equipment (46), thereby protecting thewearer's fingers and hand by transferring at least part of thecompressive force (FF) past the wearer's fingers and onto the sportingequipment as is indicated by directional arrows (AA).

It may be advantageous to use the embodiment of the glove (100) with thebroader force transferring element (158) of FIGS. 4 to 7 and FIGS. 10and 11 on one hand of the wearer and the embodiment of the glove (10) ofFIGS. 1 to 3 and FIGS. 8 to 9 on the other hand of the wearer. In thecase of the glove (10, 100) being used in the game of Cricket, it may beadvantageous for the broad u-shaped force transferring element (158) tobe used on a leading hand or upper hand of a batsman (the leading orupper hand may be the left hand for a right-handed batsman, and theright hand for a left-handed batsman). For the other hand, a trailing orlower hand, it may be advantageous to provide the embodiment of theglove (10) with some u-shaped force transferring elements (38, 40, 48,50) covering pre-selected ones of the fingers, and with substantiallyflat or curved force transferring elements (42) provided on other onesof the fingers, or optionally with some fingers only being provided withpadding (54, 56). This may provide increased mobility in the trailinghand (which may require more mobility than the leading hand), whilestill providing protection for fingers that are often broken or damagedby fast balls or the like.

Referring to FIGS. 12 to 14, there is shown another example embodiment(200) of the glove. In this embodiment, a force transferring element(238) of an index finger's finger portion (226) may includesubstantially rigid members (238.1, 238.2) extending at least partiallybetween a palm side (234) and dorsal side (236) of the glove (200). Theforce transferring element (238) may further include a dorsal surface(238.3), and this dorsal surface (238.3) may include a transverselyextending wing (238.4) (which may also be referred to as a shield orwinged formation) which may extend at least partially across an adjacentfinger portion in use. The dorsal surface may include one or more dorsaledges. As is shown in FIG. 14, the winged formation (238.4) may extendat least partially across a thumb's finger portion (224) when the weareris holding a bat (246). This may provide protection against objects, andmay in particular also protect a distal part of the wearer's thumb.Other embodiments are also possible wherein the wing extends partiallyor completely across one or more of the other finger portions asrequired. The wing (238.4) may protect the wearer's thumb which may besubject to oncoming balls or other objects. It will be appreciated thatthe force transferring element (238) may otherwise be similar infunctionality to the force transferring elements described above withreference to FIGS. 1 to 11. In this embodiment the force transferringelement (238) may also be retro-fitted or attached to the glove and itmay also include an attachment formation. For example, the attachmentformation may be provided by one or more holes (247) in the dorsalsurface (238.3), to facilitate the force transferring element to bestitched to the dorsal side of the glove or finger portions. The palmside edges of the force transferring element (238) may also move to abutwith the handle of the bat when receiving an impact or compressive forcefrom an object, to protect the wearer's hand and fingers. The wearer'sthumb is particularly at risk in Cricket, because the distal end of thethumb faces directly at incoming deliveries. This embodiment mayalleviate the aforesaid risk. Other embodiments are also possible wherethe wing extends over one or more other fingers, for example the forcetransferring element of the ring finger's finger portion may have a wingthat extends at least partially over the little finger's finger portion,etc. In FIG. 14, the outer pads are omitted, but embodiments arepossible where outer pads are provided on the dorsal surface similar toFIG. 1.

FIG. 15 shows yet another embodiment (300) of the glove and forcetransferring elements, similar to the embodiment (100) shown in FIGS. 4to 7 and FIGS. 10 to 11, and which glove also includes a palm side(362). In this embodiment (300), the force transferring element (312)(and particularly a distal end thereof) may be angled. The distal end ofthe force transferring element (312) may define a distal surface (310)that partially covers one or more of the fingertips of the wearer. Thedistal end may be angled as shown, and it may extend across one or moreof the fingertips of the wearer. At the little finger's finger portionthe little finger's fingertip may be covered, the ring finger'sfingertip may be partially covered, the middle finger's fingertip may bepartially covered and the index finger's fingertip may be substantiallyopen towards a distal end thereof, defining an opening (328) in theforce transferring element (312). This embodiment may include a separaterigid structure (320) or force transferring element, for exampleprovided on a distal end of the index finger's finger portion to protectthe index finger against strikes from the distal end of the indexfinger. A palm side edge (322) of the separate rigid structure (320) orforce transferring element may be operatively spaced from the palm side(362) of the glove, in a similar way as described above with referenceto the other embodiments. A blocking device may also be provided toblock movement of the separate rigid structure in the direction of thelength of the wearer's finger. The blocking device (not shown) may forexample be provided on an inside of the u-shaped force transferringelement (312) and may arrest movement of the rigid structure (320) toinhibit damage to that finger when the object hits it from the front ofthe relevant fingertip. The separate rigid structure (320) may alsoinclude an attachment formation for attachment to the glove body. Otherfeatures of the embodiment (300) of the glove may be similar to theembodiment (100) described above with reference to FIGS. 4 to 7 andFIGS. 10 to 11. Padding may also be provided for this embodiment ifneeded, or it may simply be covered by leather, synthetic material,cloth or the like. Combinations of features of the various embodimentsdepicted and described herein may also be possible. For example, theembodiment shown in FIGS. 4 and 5 may include a distal surface similarto the distal surface (310) shown in FIG. 15, or a distal surface thatonly covers one or more of the fingertips of the wearer. The distalsurface may also be referred to as a front face of the forcetransferring element. The distal surface may extend to cover thefingertips of one or more of the finger portions, such as the middlefinger's finger portion and the ring finger's finger portion.

The present disclosure may provide advantages over known devices,because the force transferring elements may provide at least two contactpoints arranged to abut with the sporting equipment upon receiving animpact from an object, irrespective of the orientation of the wearer'shand relative to the sporting equipment. For example, with theembodiment shown in FIG. 15, a first contact point or palm side edge(324) as well as a second contact point or palm side edge (326) may bearranged to abut with the sporting equipment when an impact is receivedfrom the object. Similarly, with the embodiment shown in FIG. 1, boththe palm side edges (44) of the force transferring element (38) of theindex finger may be arranged to both come into abutment or contact withthe sporting equipment when receiving an impact force from the object.It will be appreciated that at least two contact points or palm sideedges may also be provided for the other embodiments described herein.This may especially provide advantages for a bottom hand of a Cricketplayer, because typically only a few fingers of the wearer are used tohold the handle of the Cricket bat with the operatively lower hand.

For the example embodiment of FIG. 15, if the wearer uses his indexfinger, middle finger and thumb of his hand to hold the handle of thebat, and an impact force is received from a ball onto a dorsal surfaceof the force transferring element (312), then both the first and secondcontact points (324, 326) or palm side edges may move towards the handleof the bat, make contact with the bat handle, and the force wouldtherefore be at least partially transferred past the wearer's fingers toprotect them. The flexible member may be compressed by the impact forceof the object. In other words, a flexible part of the glove to which theforce transferring element is attached may flex or compress (or move) tobring the palm side edge into abutment with the sporting equipment.Alternatively, one or more of the pads may provide the flexible memberas described above. The flexible member may also be a separate flexiblemember which is attached to the attachment formation of the forcetransferring element and to the glove. Referring again to FIG. 15, anembodiment may also be possible wherein an opening (328) is provided onboth sides of the u-shaped force transferring element (312) (i.e. at theindex finger side and at the little finger side), with the front face(310) or substantially rigid closure extending between these twoopenings. Such an embodiment may provide an ambidextrous accessory orforce transferring element which can be attached or retro-fitted toeither a right-hand glove or a left-hand glove.

Having at least two contact points or palm side edges between the forcetransferring element and the sporting equipment upon impact from theobject may be important, because if only one contact point is providedthe object may still cause damage to the wearer's fingers or hand as aresult of the force transferring element pivoting or rotating uponreceiving the impact. Having at least two contact points may thusprovide a secure or stable structure which may be more effective attransferring force to the sporting equipment, because the forcetransferring element may be less likely to rotate or pivot when itcontacts the sporting equipment at two or more separate locations. Thisadvantage may be provided even if the wearer does not use all his or herfingers to hold the sporting equipment. There are known gloves havereinforcing parts provided in an upper layer of padding. However, thesereinforcing parts are fixed into these gloves, and they are thus unableto move past the wearer's finger(s) to come into contact with thesporting equipment without causing significant compression to thewearer's finger or hand. This is because a dorsal layer of these glovesprevents this movement, and/or because these reinforcing parts areusually too short to prevent injury.

It will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that there are manyvariations to the invention as herein defined and/or described withreference to the accompanying drawings. For example, the inner and outerpads may be provided by a single pad. The force transferring element(s)may be provided only on one, or on more than one of the finger portionsas required by the particular application. U-shaped force transferringelements, or generally flat, or generally curved, or generally elongatedforce transferring elements may be used or a combination of these asrequired. The force transferring elements may have any shape thatincludes projections that are longer than the thickness or diameter ofthe wearer's fingers, or an estimated diameter of a wearer's fingers whois expected to use the glove. The force transferring elements may bearranged to inhibit possible damage to the ball or object, for exampleby adding outer pads of a particular foam or other cushioning or shockabsorbing materials. The palm side surface or edge of the forcetransferring elements may be a straight surface, or it may be a curvedsurface that is arranged to abut a round or oval handle. There may alsobe parts of the force transferring elements that are cut away toaccommodate the wearer's fingers, particularly to accommodate the thumbas it wraps around the handle while the wearer is holding a bat. Theforce transferring elements may also be padded or lined (for examplewith leather or synthetic material), to limit wear on the glove and/orto improve the feel of the glove for the wearer and/or to alleviatedamage to the ball. The force transferring elements, and particularlythe outer pads may be arranged so that they have a shape that resemblesa sporting glove of the particular sport, for example a Cricket glove.The padding or cushioning materials may be chosen so that it deflectsthe ball in a way that is familiar or known to players so that wearingthe glove does not increase chances of being caught off the glove.

The force transferring elements may have holes in them so that the othercomponents of the glove may be stitched or otherwise attached to theforce transferring elements. An example of these holes is shown in FIG.14, but the other embodiments may also include these holes or othertypes of attachment formations for attaching the force transferringelement(s) to the glove body. Embodiments are also possible wherein theforce transferring element and particularly the dorsal surface thereofmay extend at least partially over a dorsal part of the wearer's hand,for example to cover at least a part of the knuckles and/or at least adorsal part of the hand between the knuckles and wrist of the wearer.This may enable other parts of the wearer's hand to be protected. Theforce transferring elements may be manufactured from any substantiallyrigid material which may be a lightweight material to reduce the overallweight of the glove. Materials that may be used include, but are notlimited to metals such as aluminium or titanium, other materials such ascomposites, carbon fibre, polymers (for example polycarbonate), plasticsetc.

It will further be appreciated that the various force transferringelements described herein (and/or the separate rigid structure in FIG.15) may be manufactured separately and then retro-fitted or attached toa glove. Each of the force transferring elements described herein mayinclude at least one attachment formation which can be attached to aglove body. For example, the u-shaped force transferring elements mayinclude the attachment formation on a side thereof which can then beattached to one of the finger portions, or to another part of the glovebody. Alternatively, the attachment formation may be in the form of oneor more holes in the force transferring element (as mentioned above), sothat it can be stitched to the glove. Alternatively, the attachmentformation may be the dorsal surface itself, of the force transferringelement, which can be attached, glued or affixed to a dorsal side of theglove, or attached between the inner and outer pads as described above.Otherwise, the attachment formation may be a part of the forcetransferring element that partially extends from the dorsal side of theglove towards the palm side, and it may be attached to the glove orfinger portion(s). The force transferring elements that are not u-shaped(for example those shown in FIG. 1 for the little finger) may alsoinclude the attachment formation for attachment to the glove. This typeof force transferring element may also be used or provided between otherfinger portions of the glove. In the embodiments described herein, thedorsal surface may be the dorsal edge of the relevant force transferringelement. The force transferring element(s) may be attached to the gloveby way of the attachment formation, and many types of attachmentformations may be used. For example, attachment by way of hook-and-loopfasteners (e.g. Velcro®) or clips, snap-fit attachments, zip fasteners,glue or any other type of fastener may be used to attach the forcetransferring element to the glove, or to one or more of the fingerportions.

There is thus provided an accessory (38, 40, 42, 48, 50, 158, 238, 312,320) for use with a glove to protect hands of a wearer against impactfrom an object. The accessory may include a substantially rigid forcetransferring element having a palm side edge and a dorsal surface. Anattachment formation may be configured to be attached to a glove bodysuch that the force transferring element extends at least partiallybetween a palm side and a dorsal side of the glove in use, with the palmside edge being operatively spaced away from the palm side of the glove(and spaced away from sporting equipment when held by the wearer whilewearing the glove). The attachment formation may be arranged to enablemovement of the force transferring element to at least partiallytransfer a compressive impact force from the object past the wearer'shands in use.

The force transferring element may provide protection against injurieswhere the wearer's finger is compressed between the object and thesporting equipment, by transferring the force from the object to thesporting equipment. It should be appreciated that a substantial amountof the force or energy of the object is transferred or conveyed past thewearer's hand or fingers. The force transferring element may thus form aprotective chamber or cage wherein the wearer's hand or finger(s) arelocated in use. The protective chamber may have a plurality of sides,for example three, or four sides: the dorsal side, a distal side (facingaway from the distal tip of the relevant finger), a thumb side (facingtowards the wearer's thumb when the hand is outstretched) and a littlefinger side (facing away from the thumb when the hand is outstretched).This protective chamber may house any number of fingers or even parts ofthe hand of the wearer.

It should further be appreciated that the padding, including the innerand outer padding may be optional. In other words, the glove may includethe force transferring element, whether u-shaped, straight, curved,angled, or winged, and this may protect the hands or fingers of thewearer without necessarily requiring padding. The inner pads may beprovided merely for comfort (or “feel”), or merely to suspend the dorsalsurface above the wearer's fingers. The dorsal surface is typicallysubstantially flat, but as shown in FIG. 9 for the little finger, thedorsal surface may be a relatively small surface or dorsal edge of theforce transferring element. These generally flat force transferringelements may also be used for the rest of the wearer's fingers. Becausethe padding may be omitted, the glove may be made lighter and/or lessbulky than known gloves that the applicant is aware of, withoutcompromising protection. The hands may be enabled to be used moredexterously when wearing the glove and the glove may provide bettercooling or better ventilation to the hand (which may also reduce theamount of sweat) because less padding or no padding at all is needed.

The foregoing description has been presented for the purpose ofillustration; it is not intended to be exhaustive or to limit theinvention to the precise forms disclosed. Persons skilled in therelevant art can appreciate that many modifications and variations arepossible in light of the above disclosure. The language used in thespecification has been principally selected for readability andinstructional purposes, and it may not have been selected to delineateor circumscribe the inventive subject matter. It is therefore intendedthat the scope of the invention be limited not by this detaileddescription, but rather by any claims that issue on an application basedhereon. Accordingly, the disclosure of the embodiments of the inventionis intended to be illustrative, but not limiting, of the scope of theinvention, which is set forth in the following claims.

Finally, throughout the specification and accompanying claims, unlessthe context requires otherwise, the word ‘comprise’ or variations suchas ‘comprises’ or ‘comprising’ will be understood to imply the inclusionof a stated integer or group of integers but not the exclusion of anyother integer or group of integers.

1. A glove for protecting fingers of a wearer against impact from anobject, the glove comprising: a plurality of finger portions forreceiving the fingers of the wearer, each finger portion defining a palmside and a dorsal side; and at least one substantially rigid, planarforce transferring element which is attached to at least one of thefinger portions and extends at least partially between the palm side anddorsal side of such finger portion, the force transferring element beingconfigured, upon receiving a compressive impact force from the object onthe dorsal side of the finger portion, to at least partially transferthe compressive force past the wearer's fingers, wherein a palm sideedge of the force transferring element is operatively spaced away fromthe palm side of the finger portion when the glove is worn by thewearer.
 2. The glove as claimed in claim 1, wherein the forcetransferring element is suspended by a flexible member so that the palmside edge of the force transferring element is operatively spaced awayfrom a handle of sporting equipment held by the wearer, and wherein theflexible member compresses under the force of the object bringing theforce transferring element into abutment with the sporting equipment,thereby at least partially transferring the impact force from the objectto the sporting equipment to protect one or more fingers or a hand ofthe wearer in use.
 3. The glove as claimed in claim 1, wherein the forcetransferring element further includes a dorsal surface.
 4. The glove asclaimed in claim 1, wherein the force transferring element is in theform of a u-shaped structure including two substantially rigid membersextending at least partially between the palm side and the dorsal side.5. The glove as claimed in claim 4, wherein the dorsal surface facesaway from the palm side and extends across one, two, three or more thanthree of the finger portions.
 6. The glove as claimed in claim 2,further including padding adjacent to, or forming part of the fingerportions, wherein the padding includes an inner pad which is on thedorsal side of the glove near the wearer's fingers, and an outer padwhich is on the dorsal side of the glove and outside the inner pad. 7.The glove as claimed in claim 6, wherein the dorsal surface of the forcetransferring element extends across one or more of the finger portionsand between the inner and outer pads.
 8. The glove as claimed in claim7, wherein the inner pad provides the flexible member that is arrangedto space the force transferring element away from the palm side of thefinger portions.
 9. The glove as claimed in claim 6, wherein the innerpad of the finger portion is configured such that when an impact isreceived on the dorsal side, one of the outer pad and the inner pad iscompressed, until the palm side edge of the force transferring elementcomes into abutment with the sporting equipment, or with the handlethereof, thereby transferring at least part of the compressive forcepast the wearer's fingers or past the wearer's hand onto the sportingequipment.
 10. The glove as claimed in claim 3, wherein the dorsalsurface includes a transversely extending wing which extends at leastpartially across an adjacent finger portion.
 11. The glove as claimed inclaim 1, wherein the force transferring element has a radial lengthwhich is greater than an estimated diameter of the wearer's fingers. 12.The glove as claimed in claim 1, wherein at least two force transferringelements are provided between two or more of the finger portions. 13.The glove as claimed in claim 4, wherein the force transferring elementis in the form of a u-shaped structure and wherein a distal end of thedorsal surface of the u-shaped force transferring element extends past atip of one of the wearer's fingers in use.
 14. The glove as claimed inclaim 13, wherein the distal end is an open end.
 15. The glove asclaimed in claim 13, wherein the distal end includes a substantiallyrigid closure that at least partially covers the tip of one or more ofthe wearer's fingers in use.
 16. A glove for protecting hands of awearer against impact from an object, the glove comprising: a glove bodyhaving a plurality of finger portions for receiving the fingers of thewearer, the glove body defining a palm side and a dorsal side; and atleast one substantially rigid force transferring element which isattached to the glove body and extends at least partially between thepalm side and dorsal side of the glove, the force transferring elementbeing configured, upon receiving a compressive impact force from theobject on the dorsal side of the glove, to at least partially transferthe compressive force past the wearer's hands, wherein a palm side edgeof the force transferring element is operatively spaced away from thepalm side of the glove when the glove is worn by the wearer.
 17. Theglove as claimed in claim 16, wherein the force transferring element issuspended by a flexible member so that the palm side edge of the forcetransferring element is operatively spaced away from a handle ofsporting equipment held by the wearer, and wherein the flexible membercompresses under the force of the object bringing the force transferringelement into abutment with the sporting equipment, thereby at leastpartially transferring the impact force from the object to the sportingequipment to protect one or more fingers or a hand of the wearer in use.18. An accessory for use with a glove to protect hands of a weareragainst impact from an object, the accessory comprising: a substantiallyrigid force transferring element having a palm side edge and a dorsalsurface; and an attachment formation which is configured to be attachedto a glove body such that the force transferring element extends atleast partially between a palm side and a dorsal side of the glove inuse, with the palm side edge operatively spaced away from the palm sideof the glove.
 19. The accessory as claimed in claim 18, wherein theattachment formation is arranged to be suspended by a flexible member sothat the palm side edge of the force transferring element is operativelyspaced away from a handle of sporting equipment held by the wearer, andwherein the flexible member compresses under the force of the objectbringing the force transferring element into abutment with the sportingequipment, thereby at least partially transferring the impact force fromthe object to the sporting equipment to protect one or more fingers or ahand of the wearer in use.